1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to portable storage devices, for example, portable storage devices carrying proprietary data of an institution.
2. Description of Related Art
Portable storage devices are commonplace, in form factors such as USB flash drive (UFD); PC-cards; and small storage cards used with digital cameras, music players, handheld and palmtop computers, and cellular telephones. Portable removable storage devices also include portable magnetic disks and portable digital appliances (music players and cellular telephones) that double as general-purpose storage devices.
Institutions such as corporations, government agencies and other organizations have found removable storage devices very useful for allowing employees to carry proprietary data for working at home or when traveling. However, proprietary data is often confidential, and unauthorized access to proprietary data may be considered damaging to the institution. Two commonly identified risks are the loss or theft of a portable storage device carrying proprietary data, and theft of proprietary data by unauthorized insiders. There are a variety of known solutions for password or biometric protection of the access to the content of a portable storage device, and technical and administrative measures for restricting and monitoring data copying from the institution network computers to portable storage devices.
Another potential risk is that of “insider” employees who at first “legitimately” take possession of the storage device on which proprietary data is stored, and then have their status changed from “authorized” to “unauthorized” for carrying proprietary information. Examples include employees that are dismissed, or employees that fall under suspicion. In such cases, an employee may already carry in his or her portable storage device sensitive proprietary information that he or she is no longer authorized to access.
There is thus a need to allow institutions to restrict access to proprietary information stored in a portable storage device even from users who legitimately carry such devices.